Title: THE GIRL IN THE DOORWAY
Author: Louise Mangos
ISBN: 9783952592779
Publisher: Mana Publishing
Pages: 355
Source: Review copy from the Publisher
Blog Tour Organised by Random Things Tours
Will rescuing a homeless student be his greatest mistake? When bookseller James meets homeless student Emma on a London street, the attraction is instant. But after a magical Christmas break in the Swiss Alps, they return to find his flat has been burgled, and the police want to question James about the suspicious death of another homeless person.
As he and his friend Sally chase clues from the West End of London to the snow-laden mountains of Switzerland to solve the mystery of his stolen antique books and family heirlooms, James is forced to ask himself whether he has been desperately unlucky, blinded by love, or worse.
Official Summary
15 July 2025
This was my first time reading anything by Louise Mangos, and I can safely say — it won’t be my last. I picked up The Girl in the Doorway out of curiosity and ended up racing through the entire thing in one sitting. It’s the perfect blend of suspense, mystery, and those unsettling questions that leave you second-guessing every character’s motive.
The story kicks off when James, a London bookseller, has a chance encounter with Emma, a homeless student living rough on the streets. Their connection is immediate, and what begins as an impulsive, seemingly good-natured decision to help her quickly snowballs into something far more complicated.
Their magical Christmas escape to the Swiss Alps feels like the calm before the storm, because the moment they return to London, James’s life starts unravelling. His flat is ransacked, his precious antique books and family heirlooms gone, and suddenly he’s a person of interest in the suspicious death of another homeless man.
What I loved about this book is how Mangos keeps you off balance. You want to believe in James, but there’s always that lingering doubt. Has he been conned? Is Emma hiding more than she lets on? Or is James, blinded by attraction, in way over his head? The atmosphere switches between the gritty streets of London and the postcard-perfect yet isolated Swiss Alps, adding another layer of tension as the clues unravel.
The pacing is relentless, the mystery tightly woven, and the characters all walk that fine line between trustworthy and suspicious, exactly what I look for in a good psychological suspense.
The Girl in the Doorway completely sucked me in. It’s sharp, fast-paced, and full of those little twists that keep your heart rate up. For my first Louise Mangos book, it was a winner, and I’ll definitely be checking out more of her work.
Highly recommended if you enjoy mysteries that blur the line between romance, danger, and deception.
REMEMBER TO VISIT THE OTHER TOUR STOPS
Also by Louise Mangos
THE BEATEN TRACK
A traumatised young woman meets a man who offers security, but her nightmare is far from finished . . .
Sandrine’s round-the-world backpacking trip was supposed to be an adventure. But she returned to Switzerland penniless, pregnant, and emotionally shattered. The man who stalked her committed suicide, the man she fell for abandoned her, and now Sandrine is trying to take care of her baby, Kai, and her father, who is slipping into dementia.
She finds herself both nervous and thrilled when an American named Scott takes an immediate interest in her after a chance meeting in a café. He’s the picture of sun-bleached physical perfection, and he treats her—and Kai—with care and generosity.
Sandrine is tempted to believe her luck is finally changing for the better. Despite the sudden arrival of her supposed Prince Charming, though, she may not be on the verge of living happily ever after . . .
REVIEW COMING SOON!
About The Author
Author bio from the publisher
Louise Mangos grew up in the UK but has spent more than half her life in Switzerland. Her debut psychological suspense, Strangers on a Bridge, was a finalist in the Exeter
Novel Prize and long-listed for the Bath Novel Award. She has published three further psychological suspense novels – The Art of Deception, The Beaten Track (gold medallist in the Global Book Awards) and Five Fatal Flaws (shortlisted in the Page Turner Awards).
She lives in the foothills of the Alps with her Kiwi husband and two sons. When she’s not writing, you can find her on the cross-country ski trails or wild swimming in the lake by her home, depending on the season.
Louise also writes historical fiction as L.S.Mangos and short fiction, which has won prizes and been published in more than twenty print anthologies. She holds a Masters in Crime Writing from the University of East Anglia.
Thank you to Anne Cater from Random Things Tours for including me in this blog tour. I did not know what to expect from this book, but I loved it. I have already added The Beaten Track to my wish list. I am looking forward to reading more from this author. Are you a fan? Which is your favourite book? Please leave a comment below, and I will try to add it to my TBR. Until next time…. Happy Reading!
This sound like a great read!